Friday, April 30, 2010

If you can't find something to do tonight, you might just want to move to a different city because I don't think Austin is the place for you. There's a lot going on, so here's a rundown of the highlights:

First up: KVRX presents Lights Out! @ Seaholm Power Plant with Best Fwends, Chest Pain, Ringo Deathstarr and some comedians. The show runs from 8 p.m. - 2 a.m. and will cost you $10. I'm pretty sure this one is taking place inside the power plant which will offer a more interesting venue than the outside of the plant like we've seen before. It should be fun and one you will be talking about for a while now.

Next: Owen Pallett (Final Fantasy) w/ Snowblink @ Mohawk outside. Owen Pallett's newest album (and first under his actual name), "Heartland", has been getting lot of attention for good reason. His live show is one that will keep you staring and leave you wanting more when it's all over.

Next: Mono w/ Balmorhea @ Emo's outside. If you'd like to take in two great bands on one stage, this one is for you. You will probably end up running the emotional gamut so you might want to have someone there to comfort you. It should be a good night though.

If none of those options suit you, Dosh will be playing insideat Emo's and Cowabunga Babes will be at Beerland. Please enjoy the night.

Tuesday, April 20, 2010

One of our favorite records of the year hits store shelves today and you should go out and buy a copy or two for yourselves. Caribou has been an intriguing band from the beginning and "Swim" takes the band to new creative heights. The record finds Dan Snaith doing some heavy meditation on dance tracks that meld perfectly with Caribou's brand of accessible, "out-there" indie. Here's what Snaith had to say about the record:

"So much of contemporary music is soaked in referencing this or that. I wanted people to put the record on and not be able to say, 'This sounds like so-and-so.' I want people to say, 'This sounds like Dan!'"

If "Swim" is really what Snaith sounds like, I hope he stays true to himself and puts out more records in the future in this same vein. The record is out on Merge today and if you order it on iTunes, it will come with a bonus track, "Odessa (Junior Boys remix)".

Oh and hey! The band will be playing in Austin on May 16 with Toro y Moi at Emo's. The venue has been moving a lot of shows due to early ticket sell-outs, so you might want to get yours now!

Friday, April 16, 2010

Austin is full of record stores and you are the lucky one who gets to peruse them all tomorrow on Record Store Day(and if you aren't in Austin, I'm sure you're near at least one great independent record store!). There will be a ton of special releases in honor of the day and Austin's record stores are always chock-full of great used records. Here's a run-down of the exclusive RSD releases, many of which are highly limited (this list isn't exhaustive, but you can check out the full deal here):

Against Me! - 2 song 7" - 2,500 copies

Album Leaf - There Is a Wind 12" - 1,000 copies

Beach House - Zebra 12" - 1,500 copies

Beastie Boys - "super surprise" white label 12" - 1,000 copies

Black Keys - 2 new songs 12" - 50,000 copies

Black Moth Super Rainbow - Eating Us - extremely ltd. foil double LP

Bon Iver/Peter Gabriel - both artists cover each other on a 7" - 2,000 copies

Great Lake Swimmers - acoustic live version of Lost Channels album on CD

Japandroids - Post Nothings LP on 180 gram vinyl - 300 copies

Joy Division - 4 LP 180 gram box set - 820 copies

LCD Soundsystem - Pow Pow one-sided 12"

Mountain Goats - Life of the World To Come - 50 min. live film + 45 min. Q&A - 2,000 copies

Neko Case - Middle Cyclone - on clear vinyl - 2,000 copies

Of Montreal - 7" w/ one cover and one new song - 1,000 copies

Surfer Blood/Holiday Shores - split 7"

Please get out and support one of the many independent record stores that call Austin home. They are staffed by the nicest people on the planet and you can pick yourself up a nice piece of limited wax, something used you thought you'd never see again, or a record you've been meaning to get for a while now. Most of all, have fun out there and support the locals!

Tonight, if you can muster up the nerve to get out of the house on such a not-so-beautiful evening, you can tap those toes and dance your little butt off to the sometimes sad / sometimes happy / all the time fantastic sounds of Casiotone for the Painfully Alone at Emo's on the inside stage. It might not always work out for the characters in Owen Ashworth's songs, but it should work out for you tonight if you choose to attend the show. It's been a while since we've covered a show on the intimate stage at Emo's and we've never seen CFTPA so tonight should be fun. Magical Beautiful will be opening (I presume) and will also take the place of Ashworth's backing band, so this show should be extra-special.

Wednesday, April 14, 2010

Talk about a double-bill! Tonight's show at The Independentfeatures two great bands, White RabbitsandHere We Go Magic. If you aren't in tune with either of them, it's about time. If you are, you know what you'll be missing if you decide to skip out on this show. Doors open at 9:00 p.m. and tickets are $13-15. The entrance to the club can be a bit difficult to find, from my understanding, but it is located near 5th and Brushy, so don't get lost!

Life is crazy right now and as you can tell, I'm a bit behind with the SXSW stuff, but please feel free to enjoy the shots from Friday. The set features Local Natives, Free Energy, Surfer Blood, Washed Out w/ Small Black, Zola Jesus, and Andrew WK.

Thursday, April 08, 2010

Here's the latest Xiu Xiu video. It's for the song "This Too Shall Pass Away (For Freddy)", which is about the relationship woes we have all experienced and can all understand and the video features some 8-bit cartoon madness that none of us can understand (fully). It's awesome and worth a watch and a listen.

Monday, April 05, 2010

Austin gets a killer show in the form of King Khan & The Shrines, The Fresh & Onlys, and The Strange Boys at Emo's on the outside stage. All three bands are fantastic in their own rights and put together, this show is bound to be a winner. Doors open at 9 p.m. and tickets are $17, but it will be worth it. Trust us. We caught King Khan & The Shrines a couple of times last SXSW and their live show was one of the highlights of the whole week. They played each show like it was their last and had a lot of fun doing it. Those old-school vibes, cheerleaders, the suggestive dancing, and the full band will make it worth your while. The Fresh & Onlys were also one of our favorite bands from this year's SXSW and they deserve your attention as well. See you there!